What Made David Great?

I just returned from a missions trip to India, where it was my privilege to teach the characteristics of David to a group of women who had never sat under a woman and learned the word of God. I hope they were as rejuvenated by the spirit of David as I was. We looked at the fact that he had the Spirit of God in him (as we do if we know the Lord), and he had a fearless trust in God, was fair and kind, was often a quiet warrior, was spiritually dependent and independent at the same time, and he encourage himself in God. There were more lessons, but those certainly stand out.

I encourage anyone to study David’s life from 1 and 2 Samuel and from the Psalms. We’ve had a good look into the mind of David in our study here of Ps. 119.  These verses show what made him a great character. They serve as his testimony, and we know that we learn great things from God’s testimonies. Today, join me in looking at Ps. 119:97-100.

Psa 119:97 O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day.	The best thoughts we can have all day are the ones focused on God’s word. David loved to meditate on God’s law—all day.  We tend to meditate on things all day, usually whatever is top of mind, whether that be problems, projects or people, etc. I think it’s a great idea to find some verses in the morning and think on them all day. Wonderful go-to verses are Prov. 3:5-6 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  (6)  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
(98)  Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser than mine enemies: for they are ever with me.	David also thought on God’s commandments, and he recognized that a good understanding of them made him wiser than his enemies. He said “for they are ever with me.” Did he mean God’s commandments were ever with him, or his enemies? I suspect he meant God’s commandments were ever with him. He looked at them as treasures to guide him through the minefields of his enemies. That’s how he had the grace to go through what he did with Saul pursing him relentlessly. We also can be wiser than our enemies if we will focus on God’s solutions rather than our problems.
(99)  I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation.	We can be on top of the world when we understand and grasp God’s testimonies. We can live encouraged, not because we read “Our Daily Bread” in the morning for a boost, but because we ponder God’s ways shown in his word, and we trust him. It gives us more understanding than our teachers.
(100)  I understand more than the ancients, because I keep thy precepts.	Not only can we have better spiritual understanding than our teachers, we can have more understanding than wise people of old. Think of any famous philosopher through the ages. They knew nothing truly unless it was God’s precepts. David certainly had a life-altering grasp of God through his word, and that’s where he found his strength and his glory. I think he had that level of understanding because of his enemies. They drove him to seek God. When we have challenges, may they drive us to God and his word and not to despair.